The EU is not in a rush to provide Ukraine with the $50B loan secured by Russian assets, though Kyiv desperately needs it.

The EU has still not taken the necessary steps to fulfill the agreement with the G7 and provide Ukraine with about $50B, secured by revenues from the Russian Federation’s assets, by the end of the year. The EU was supposed to pass legislation that would extend the freeze on sovereign Russian assets until Moscow has paid for its war against Ukraine. This would ensure that the frozen assets would remain available to generate the interest that would be used to repay the loan to Ukraine.

The decision is very important for Ukraine, as $50B roughly covers its annual budget deficit. However, the implementation of this decision in the EU has reached a dead end. None of the big players in the bloc, such as Germany, France or even the EC, have taken the initiative to advance the issue, which restrains the US.

The reasons for the delay on the part of the EU are bureaucratic inertia after the European Parliament elections, summer vacations, and negotiations on the formation of a new EC.